Wheldon, a two-time Indianapolis 500 winner, died Oct. 18 in a multi-car crash during an IndyCar at Las Vegas Speedway. He won the 500 in 2005 and 2011. Wheldon was from England. He and his wife had two sons.
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Al Davis: 1929-2011

Al Davis, the renegade owner of the Oakland Raiders who bucked NFL authority while exhorting his silver-and-black team to "Just win, baby!," died Oct. 8. He was 82.

Davis, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, died at his home in Oakland, the team said. The cause of death was not immediately disclosed.

Davis was one of the most important figures in NFL history—a rebel with a subpoena. That was most evident during the 1980s when he went to court—and won—for the right to move his team from Oakland to Los Angeles. Even after he moved the Raiders back to the Bay Area in 1995, he sued for $1.2 billion to establish that he still owned the rights to the L.A. market.

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Mike Heimerdinger: 1952-2011

Mike Heimerdinger, a veteran assistant in the NFL who coached players including Steve McNair, Jay Cutler and Vince Young, died Sept. 30. He was 58.

He most recently was offensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans and had been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in November 2010. He died while in Mexico to receive experimental treatments.

"We lost a very special person and my best friend in Mike Heimerdinger," Mike Shanahan, now the coach of the Washington Redskins, said in a statement. "I know the man upstairs needed a superstar so he took him earlier than we all wanted. His love for his family was unprecedented and I will forever miss him."

A member of the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame and the first commissioner of the Big East Conference, Dave Gavitt, died Sept. 7. He was 73.

He led Providence to the Final Four in 1973 and started the Big East offices there in 1979.

He was selected to coach the U.S. Olympic team in 1980, but the United States boycotted the Moscow Games. Gavitt was president of USA Basketball and oversaw the introduction of NBA players onto the U.S. Olympic roster, including the Dream Team at the 1992 Games.

McCrimmon, 52, was following his career path as coach of Yaroslavl Lokomotiv of the KHL, having left the Detroit Red Wings in May. He never got the chance -- he was among the 36 killed when the team's jet crashed Sept. 7 in central Russia. McCrimmon was a first-round pick, 15th overall, by the Bruins in 1979. He was on the Flames' 1989 Stanley Cup team and reached the Stanley Cup Finals twice with the Flyers, 1985 and 1987, and also played for the Hartford Whalers and Phoenix Coyotes. He began coaching after he retired, as an assist for the Islanders, Flames and Thrashers before his two years with the Wings. He also coached WHL Saskatoon two years.

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Pavol Demitra: 1974-2011

Not many people figured Demitra would make it in the NHL. He was, after all, a ninth-round pick, 227th overall in 1993, by the Senators. Among the few who did was Mike Keenan. It was Keenan, then coach and GM of the Blues, who acquired Demitra in 1996 for a spare-parts defenseman. Demitra turned into a find, helping the Blues build the NHL's best record in 1999-2000 and reach the Western Conference finals in 2001. He would go on to play 16 NHL seasons, have more than 300 goals, win the Lady Bing Trophy in 2000, and appear in three All-Star Games. He left the NHL after the 2009-10 season, having also played for the Kings, Wild and Canucks. He join KHL Yaroslavl Lokomotiv in 2010 and died when the team's plane crashed Sept. 7 in central Russia. Demitra was 36.

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Lee Roy Selmon: 1954-2011

Hall of Fame defensive end Lee Roy Selmon, who played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1976 to 1984, died Sunday, two days after suffering a stroke. He was 56.

Selmon was hospitalized Friday afternoon following a stroke at his Tampa home. While at St. Jospeh's Hospital on Saturday, his brother Dewey said he was being responsive to some family members and showed signs of improvement.

But Selmon's former teammates began receiving notifications of his death on Sunday, according to the St. Petersburg Times. Former Tampa Bay quarterback Doug Williams, now head coach at Grambling, said he was informed through former Bucs linebacker David Lewis that Selmon had died.

Selmon played college ball at Oklahoma, winning the Lombardi Award and the Outland Trophy in 1975. He was an All-American for the Sooners, who won national titles in 1974 and 1975. He played with his brothers Dewey and Lucious at OU.

Selmon was the first player named to the Buccaneers' Ring of Honor in 2009, the St. Petersburg Times noted. His No. 63 is the only one retired by the Bucs.

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Mike Flanagan: 1951-2011

Mike Flanagan won 167 games in an 18-year major league career with the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays. He also won the 1979 American League Cy Young Award and a World Series ring with the 1983 Orioles.

According to reports, police found Flanagan's body Wednesday (Aug. 24) near a trail at his Maryland property. No cause of death had been given as of Wednesday evening.

Former teammate Jim Palmer called Flanagan "one of a kind." Ex-Orioles catcher Rick Dempsey said Flanagan's death was "a tremendous loss."

Jerry Smith, born in 1930 in Ohio, was a professional football player and coach, who had a 26-year NFL coaching career after his playing days were over. A guard out of the University of Wisconsin, Smith split his 29-game NFL career between the San Francisco 49ers, who drafted him in 1952, and the Green Bay Packers.
Smith's playing career ended in 1956 and started as a coach in 1960, leading the defensive linemen and linebackers for the Boston Patriots. Smith coached the offensive and defensive lines for 10 AFL/NFL teams from 1960-85 before serving six seasons as a scout for the Kansas City Chiefs. At the end of the 1971 season, Smith received his one short stint as head coach. Lou Saban resigned as Broncos coach in the middle of the season, and Smith was named his replacement for the final five games, going 2-3.

Born and raised in Texas, Bubba Smith was a defensive start in the NFL before discovering a successful second career as an actor.
Smith hoped to play college ball for Texas, but the Southwest Conference didn't integrate until Smith graduated. He became famous for the fan chant, "Kill, Bubba, Kill," and was a two-time All-American. He's a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, and his No. 95 was retired by Michigan State in 2006.
Smith was the first overall pick in the 1967 draft by the Baltimore Colts, who he helped to the Super Bowl V title. A two-time Pro Bowler, Smith also played for the Oakland Raiders and Houston Oilers.
As an actor, he was best known for his role as Moses Hightower in the "Police Academy" series.

Born in Long Island, John Mackey was an NFL Hall of Famer and a Baltimore Colts legend who also served as the first NFLPA president.

A standout at Syracuse, where he would have his number retired in 2007, Mackey was drafted by the Colts in the 1963 draft. He made the key play in Baltimore's win in Super Bowl V, picking up a carom to score a then Super Bowl-record 75-yard touchdown.

Mackey revolutionized the tight end position, becoming famous for his big-play ability and speed. He was named to five Pro Bowls and was an All-Pro three times.

In 1992, he became the second tight end elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In a 1999 Sporting News list of the greatest football players of all-time, Mackey was ranked No. 48 -- the highest tight end on the list. The John Mackey Award is given annually to the top tight end in college football.

Mackey also left behind an important legacy in retirement. After initially not receiving benefits from the league and the NFLPA for his dementia, the "88 plan" was established to support former professional football players suffering from dementia after retirement.

Hideki Irabu was one of the first Japanese stars to play major league baseball, and was best known for his tumultuous stint with the New York Yankees.

Irabu began his career in Japan, but the San Diego Padres purchased his contract from the Chiba Lotte Marines of the Japan Pacific League in January of 1997. Those rights then were traded to the New York Yankees that May.

A star in his native country, Irabu was hailed as the "Japanese Nolan Ryan." But, in part because of weight issues, he failed to live up to lofty expectations with the Yankees.
In his rookie season in 1997, Irabu went 5-4 with a 7.09 ERA in 13 games (nine starts) for New York. In three seasons with the Yankees, he was 29-20 with a 4.80 ERA in 74 games (64 starts). Irabu had his best season in 1998, when he went 13-9 with a 4.06 ERA.

Irabu was dealt from the Yankees to the Montreal Expos in December of 1999 and released by the Expos in September 2001. He finished his major league career with the Texas Rangers in 2002.

In six major league seasons, Irabu was 34-35 with a 5.15 ERA in 126 games (80 starts).

Born in Alberta, Canada Winnipeg Jets forward Rick Rypien was found dead in his Alberta home before ever getting a chance to lace up for the Jets.

The former Vancouver Canuck missed most of the 2010-11 season after taking a leave of absence for personal reasons. It was his second leave in three years with the Canucks, and he had been battling depression.

Rypien is perhaps best known for his role as an enforcer with Vancouver. He had signed with the Jets in the offseason after six seasons with the Canucks. He amassed 226 penalty minutes in 119 NHL games.

Born in Brooklyn, Lorenzo Charles played basketball for North Carolina State and briefly for the Atlanta Hawks. He is best known for scoring the game-winning basket in a stunning win in the 1983 national college championship game against heavily favored Houston.
With time running out, he grabbed Dereck Whittenburg's 30-foot desperation shot and dunked it at the buzzer to give the Wolfpack a 54-52 win over a Houston team known as Phi Slama Jama that featured future Hall of Famers Akeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. The win sent coach Jim Valvano spilling onto the court, scrambling for someone to hug in what has become one of the lasting images of the NCAA Tournament.

Born Aug. 1, 1961, Thomas Emma played basketball for Duke in the early 1980s and was the Blue Devils captain in 1982-1983.

Emma scored 784 points, starting 71 games in four seasons for Duke. He was drafted by the Chicago Bulls but never played a game in the NBA. In 1998 he wrote the book, "Basketball Player's Comprehensive Guide to Strength Training."

Born May 5, 1935 in Puerto Rico, Pagan played 15 major league season for the San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates and Philadelphia Phillies.

Pagan was a career .250 hitter but was a reliable utility player who could fill in at several different positions. His eighth-inning double in Game 7 of the 1971 World Series proved to be the game-winning hit for the Pirates.

After his playing days, Pagan was a coach with the Pirates and managed in the Puerto Rican Winter League.

Born Nov. 24, 1929 John Henry Johnson was a Hall of Fame fullback for four teams during the 1950s and '60s.

Johnson played college football for St. Mary's (California) and Arizona State before joining the San Francisco 49ers in 1954, where he was a part of the "Million Dollar Backfield." Joe Perry, who also passed away in 2011, was part of that unit as well.

Johnson, a four-time Pro Bowler, also played for the Detroit Lions, Pittsburgh Steelers and Houston Oilers before retiring in 1966. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987.
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Paul Splittorff 1946-2011

Paul Splittorff, 64, died May 25 at his home in the Kansas City suburb of Blue Springs, Mo., the team said.

Splittorff was drafted by the expansion Royals in the 25th round in 1968 and spent his entire 15-year career in Kansas City. A big, blond and bespectacled left-hander with a high leg kick, he often appeared to squint into the catcher's mitt as though he was having trouble seeing the sign — proving disconcerting to hitters who wondered if they should be ready to bail out if the ball should come toward their head.

Randall Mario Poffo was born Nov. 15, 1952, in Columbus, Ohio, but was better known as legendary wrestler, "Macho Man" Randy Savage. Before his wrestling career, he had a short stint as a minor league baseball player.

The WWE named Savage its greatest champion of all time for the way he performed and carried himself in the ring. He was famous for his catchphrase, "Ooh yeah!" and became well known even to non-wrestling fans as the spokesman for Slim Jim beef jerky with the tagline, "Snap into a Slim Jim, ooh yeah!"

Harmon Clayton Killebrew was born June 29, 1936, in the farm town of Payette, Idaho. He played football and baseball, and was an all-state quarterback in high school, but it was his power with a baseball bat in his hands that got Killebrew noticed.

During his 22-season major league career—21 of which were spent with the Twins—Killebrew hit .256 with 573 homers (which places him 11th all-time) and 1,584 RBIs. He was a 13-time All-Star, a six-time AL home run champion and the 1969 AL MVP.

Killebrew was selected as the Sporting News AL Player of the Year in 1969 and 1970. In addition, the slugger was named to the Sporting News AL All-Star team in 1964 as an outfielder, 1967 as a first baseman and 1969 and 1970 as a third baseman.

Born June 23, 1982 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, Boogaard was one of the NHL's most notorious enforcers. Known as "Boogeyman," he was an intimidating force who racked up 589 penalty minutes in 277 games played.

Boogaard played six seasons in the NHL. He spent the first five years in Minnesota and played in 22 games in 2010-11. His final game was Dec. 9, 2010 in which he suffered a concussion during a fight and was never able to shake the symptoms enough to return to the ice.

Born Feb. 1, 1977 in Detroit, Robert 'Tractor' Traylor was a collegiate star at Michigan, who became an immediate fan favorite after breaking a backboard during a game his freshman season.

Traylor led the Wolverines to the 1998 NCAA Tournament, but the bid and all his records from the school were later removed due to NCAA violations stemming from his connections to booster Ed Martin. The school also vacated every game in which Traylor played.

Traylor was taken sixth overall in the 1998 draft, but his rights were immediately sent to Milwaukee in exchange for Pat Garrity and the rights to Dirk Nowitzki. He played for four different teams before leaving the NBA after the 2004-05 season. He has played overseas since and was with a Mexican professional team at the time of his death.

Born Jan. 22, 1927, Joe "The Jet" Perry was a key part of the San Francisco 49ers as they transitioned into the NFL. He was a three-time Pro Bowler from 1952-54 and retired as the NFL's all-time leading rusher. Perry was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1969.
Perry served in the military during World War II before beginning his football career. After retiring, he also had a career as a professional bowler in the PBA.

Born Feb. 24, 1923 in Michigan, Lynn Chandnois was an All-American at Michigan State before becoming a first-round selection of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1950.

Chandnois was an All-American in 1949 and remains Michigan State's all-time leader in interceptions with 20. He was a two-time Pro Bowler during his eight-year NFL career with the Steelers.
Chandnois is second all-time to only Gale Sayers in kickoff return average in the NFL.

Born Feb. 16, 1951 in Memphis, Larry Finch was an integral member of the community throughout his life. Finch helped ease racial tensions as a player at Memphis State (as it was known at the time) while the city was still dealing with the aftermath of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

Finch led Memphis State to the 1973 national championship game, where the Tigers lost to Bill Walton's UCLA Bruins despite 29 points from Finch. He graduated as the program's all-time leading scorer, and is currently second on that list.

Finch was drafted by the Lakers in 1973, but chose instead to play in the ABA for the Memphis Tams. He was also on the Memphis coaching staff from 1979-1997. He was 220-130 as the head coach from 1986-1997. In 1992, he took a team led by Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway to the Elite Eight.

Born Feb. 18, 1929, Lou Gorman was a long-time baseball executive after a short stint as a professional baseball player and a long military career.

Gorman served two tours of duty in Korea with the United States Navy after a short, unexceptional stint in professional baseball. He returned to baseball in a front-office role in 1961 and became the Seattle Mariners' first general manager in 1977.

He was next a general manager in Boston, where he served in that capacity from 1984-1993. He helped the Red Sox to the 1986 World Series, where they lost to the Mets -- and a team he helped construct while working in New York before heading to Boston.
He was still working in Boston's front office at the time of his death. He died April 1, opening day for the Red Sox, which was declared Lou Gorman Day by mayor Thomas Menino a week later.

Born Dec. 1 1916 in South Carolina, Marty Marion became famous for a long baseball career spent almost entirely in St. Louis. Marion played shortstop for 11 seasons with the Cardinals before managing them for a season in 1951. He was a player-manager in 1952 for the St. Louis Browns and a manager only in 1953 before the franchise moved to Baltimore. He then managed the White Sox from 1954-56.

Marion played in every All-Star Game from 1943-1950 (there was no game in 1945 because of World War II) and was the National League MVP in 1944. He helped the Cardinals to World Series titles in 1942, 1944, 1946.

Born Sept. 19, 1926, Edwin Donald "Duke" Snider grew up in California, where he was a three-sport star in high school. He was signed out of high school in 1943 by one of Branch Rickey's scouts and joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947.

Snider was an eight-time All Star who hit 407 home runs in his 18-year career. He helped the Dodgers win the World Series in 1955 and 1959. Snider never won an NL MVP but controversy surrounded the voting for the 1955 award, which he lost to teammate Roy Campanella. That season, Sporting News named him the National League Player of the Year.

Born July 4, 1928, Chuck Tanner had a long career in baseball as a player, manager and front-office executive.

Tanner started an eight-year playing career with a home run in his first major league at bat. He played for four different teams from 1955-62.

He was hired as the manager of the Chicago White Sox in 1970. Between 1970 and 1988, he managed the White Sox, Oakland Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves. He won the 1972 Sporting News Manager of the Year Award and led the Pirates to the 1979 World Series championship.

Born Oct. 7, 1909, Tony Malinosky was the oldest living major league baseball player at the time of his death on Feb. 8. Malinosky only played 35 games for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1937, but was honored by the Dodgers in 2009 on his 100th birthday.

After his baseball career, Malinosky served in the United States Army during World War II and fought in the Battle of the Bulge.

Aaron Douglas was a Sporting News Freshman All-American offensive lineman in 2009. Douglas, 21, played at Tennessee as a freshman, transferred to Arizona Western College last season and this winter signed with Alabama, where he participated in spring drills.

Austin Box, whom Rivals.com ranked as the top class of 2007 recruit from Oklahoma, started 11 games in three seasons with the Sooners. He missed the first half of last season with a back injury, but returned to the starting lineup mid-season. He was first on the OU depth chart at middle linebacker exiting the spring. According to The Oklahoman, Box, a rising senior, had already received his college degree.

Born Nov. 28, 1960, Dave Duerson was a Super Bowl champion whose death brought further attention to the NFL's concussion issues.

Duerson was a four-year starter and a two-time All American safety at Notre Dame before he was drafted by the Chicago Bears in 1983. He made four straight Pro Bowls between 1985-1988 and was named the NFL's Man of the Year in 1987.

Duerson helped the Chicago Bears to a Super Bowl title in 1986 and also won a championship in 1990, his only season with the New York Giants.
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Sean Matti 1988-2011

Sean Matti was a running back for Purdue. Matti did not see action with the Boilermakers, but had been a part of the program since 2007 when he joined the program as a walk-on player.

Armen Gilliam -- also known as "The Hammer" -- appeared on six NBA teams in his career. He averaged career highs in points (18.3) and rebounds (9.1) while playing for the Nets in the 1995-96 season.

A star at UNLV, Gilliam led the Runnin' Rebels to the 1987 Final Four when he set the school's single-season scoring mark with 998 points. He was selected No. 2 overall by the Phoenix Suns in the 1987 draft. Gilliam played in the NBA for 13 seasons with six different teams.

Born in St. Louis, Hall of Famer Dick Williams managed the Oakland A’s to two World Series titles in the 1970s and is one of seven managers to win pennants in both leagues.

In addition to winning the title with Oakland in 1972 and 1973, the 82-year-old also led the Boston Red Sox (1967) and San Diego Padres (1984) to their respective pennants.

Williams amassed a record of 1,571-1,451 in his 21 years of managing. He also managed the California Angels, Montreal Expos and Seattle Mariners and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2008 by the Veterans Committee.

Williams began his baseball career as a player, breaking into the league as an outfielder with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1951. He played for five teams in 13 years before turning to a 21-year career as a manager.

Williams became well known for turning around downtrodden franchises, and quickly.

Williams was also known for frequent visits to the mound to consult with his pitchers. In fact, most baseball historians credit Williams' antics during the 1972 and 1973 World Series as the reason why baseball adopted the rule that limits the amount of time a coach can visit the mound every inning.

Born in Pennsylvania, Pete Duranko was a star defensive lineman on Notre Dame's 1966 national championship team who later played eight seasons for the Denver Broncos.

Duranko earned All-American honors after making 73 tackles from his defensive tackle position for the Fighting Irish in '66. After the season, he was drafted by the NFL's Cleveland Browns and the Broncos of the AFL. He chose Denver, where he played from 1967 to 1974.

Born December 10, 1939 in Brno, Czechoslovakia, Jaroslav Jirik was the first player from Czechoslovakia to play in the National Hockey League. A Czech national team veteran, he played three games for the St. Louis Blues in the 1969-70 season.

Jirik created a frenzy in 1969 when, at the IIHF World Championships in Sweden, he covered his nation's communist crest on his uniform for a game against the Soviet Union. Other players joined in the protest, which followed the Soviet military helping to crush the 1968 Czech rebellion.

Sherman White grew up in New Jersey and became a college basketball star at Long Island University in the 1950s but served jail time for point shaving.

The 6-8 White was one of the nation's best college players for LIU in the late 1940s, and led the nation in scoring in 1951.

He appeared destined for a successful NBA career, but was arrested in 1951 for taking money to fix the outcomes of games.
Investigators found that between 1947 and 1950, 86 college games had been fixed and 32 players, including White and two teammates, were implicated. The scandal was centered in New York, where Madison Square Garden had college doubleheaders twice a week.

Nicknamed "Wild Man," Norm Willey played in 92 games for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1950 to 1957 and earned All-Pro selections three times (1953, '54, '55). He was named to the Pro Bowl, as well, in 1955 and 1956.

Willey will be remembered in football circles for an incredible game he had on Oct. 26, 1952. According to accounts, in a game vs. the New York Giants, he posted 17 tackles of quarterback Charley Conerly behind the line of scrimmage. The number may be more legend than fact, though.

Sacks were not an official statistic at the time, so Willey does not hold the NFL record.

Margo Dydek was the No. 1 pick in the 1998 WNBA draft by the Utah Starzz. She also played for San Antonio, Connecticut and Los Angeles. The 7-2 Dydek was once said to be the tallest active professional female basketball player in the world. She held the record for most blocks in a WNBA career, with 877 in 323 games, and led the league in blocks nine times, from 1998 to 2003 and again from 2005-07.

Wade Belak retired after 14 NHL seasons. He was 35. Belak's body was found Aug. 31 in a Toronto hotel. Born on July 3, 1976, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Belak was the 12th overall pick of the 1994 Draft by the Quebec Nordiques. He appeared in 35 games for the team -- which by then was the Colorado Avalanche. He also played for the Calgary Flames and Toronto Maple Leafs.

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Bobby Rhine, 1976-2011

Rhine spent his playing career with FC Dallas, and then remained with the club. He was in his first year as play-by-play man for the club.

Born in St. Louis, Rhine played college soccer at Connecticut. He was the sixth overall pick in the 1999 MLS draft. He appeared in 212 games and had 23 goals.

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Forrest Blue: 1945-2011

Forrest Blue was a four-time Pro Bowl center who helped the San Francisco 49ers win three straight division titles in the early 1970s.
Blue, selected in the first round of the 1967 draft by the 49ers, didn't miss a game for the 49ers from 1969-74 and finished his career with four seasons with the Baltimore Colts.

Desmond Allison was a two-sport prep star in Tampa and a former Kentucky basketball player.

Allison played at the University of Kentucky from 1998-2000. In his last season he averaged 8.9 points per game and 4.4 rebounds. He was one of the top nation's top recruits when he got to the Wildcats, but was dismissed from the team after two seasons.

Born January 2, 1955 in Jackson, Miss., Turner was a running back with the Cincinnati Bengals after playing his college ball at San Diego State.

Family members say Turner had been down on his luck after his playing days in the NFL. Turner was a running back for the Cincinnati Bengals for three seasons, from 1978-1980.
Turner was shot in an incident at a convenience store in Bakersfield, Calif. He was 56.

Myra Kraft, the wife of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and a hard-working philanthropist dedicated to numerous causes, was born in Worcester, Mass., and had close ties to the state and the city of Boston throughout her life.

She was an active and powerful force in her family's foundation and served on the boards of varied community and charitable organizations. She managed the Robert and Myra Kraft Family Foundation and was president of the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation, which contributed millions of dollars to charities in the United States and Israel.

She intervened in Patriots' personnel business only once -- insisting that 1996 draft choice Christian Peter be let go because of his lengthy record of violence against women. He was released a week after the draft.

Skrastins, 37, was known as "Scratch" during career. Like Karol Rachunek, he was a ninth-round pick who made the NHL (230th overall in 1998 by the Predators). He would go on to break the record for consecutive games played by a defenseman, Tim Horton's 487. His streak ended Feb. 25, 2007, because a knee injury. Skrastins later played for the Avalanche and Panthers. He finished up with the Stars, 2010-11 being the second of two with them. This would have been his first season in the KHL. He died Sept. 7 when Yaroslavl Lokomotiv's plane crashed.

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Peter Gent: 1942-2011

Peter Gent, a former NFL football player who became more famous after retiring from the league and writing "North Dallas Forty," died Sept. 30. He was 69.

Gent, who died at his boyhood home in western Michigan, went on to write several more books.

"He was just a brilliant guy who had a lot of other interests. He read a lot and loved history," his son Carter Gent said. "Watching sports didn't do much for him."

He said his father died from a pulmonary illness at his home in Bangor where he'd lived since 1990.

Peter Gent was a star basketball player at Michigan State University in the 1960s, and was drafted by the NBA's Baltimore Bullets after averaging 21 points a game in his final college season.

But he chose a different sport. Although he didn't play football in college, Gent got an NFL tryout with the Cowboys in 1964, and spent five seasons with the team.

Italian rider Marco Simoncelli died Oct. 23 after crashing and being hit by two other riders at the Malaysian MotoGP motorcycle race. He was 24.

After the crash, Simoncelli was taken to the medical center at the Sepang circuit where he died of chest, head and neck injuries, organizers said.

"He was already unconscious when the medical team arrived," MotoGP medical director Michele Macchiagodena said. "We attempted to resuscitate him but failed. He died 45 minutes later."

The race, the second to last of the season, was canceled.

Simoncelli's death was first fatality in MotoGP since Japan's Daijiro Katoh died from injuries at the 2003 Japanese Grand Prix. The number of deaths in MotoGP since it was founded in 1949 is now at 47, MotoGP said.

One of three brothers who played for the Giants, including several games with all them in the outfield, Alou died Nov. 3 in his native Dominican Republic. He was 72.

A two-time All-Star, Alou was the 1966 National League batting champion with the Pittsburgh Pirates when he hit .342. He spent his first six years with the Giants from 1960-65 and also played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics, New York Yankees and San Diego Padres.

Alou was a career .307 hitter with 31 home runs, 427 RBIs, 1,777 hits and 236 doubles in 15 major league seasons.